Admission to the doctoral examination

The doctoral candidate submits an application for admission to the doctoral examination in German or English to the Chair of the Doctoral Committee. The application must state the topic of the dissertation, the supervisors and the examination subject.

The application must be accompanied by

• a study or professional curriculum vitae
• proof of the coursework duly completed as part of the doctoral programme or full credit transfer
• proof of any language skills to be made up for
• 3 copies of the dissertation, in the case of a cumulative dissertation 
  • all parts of the dissertation
  • a confirmation from the group of supervisors that all parts of the dissertation are available in published or publishable form in accordance with the supervision agreement
  • in the case of co-authorship, an exact delimitation of the own contribution
• if applicable, a list of other scientific publications
• a written declaration that the doctoral candidate has written the dissertation independently, has cited all sources and aids used and has not already submitted the dissertation elsewhere as an examination paper
• a standard data carrier with the text of the dissertation saved in a standard data format and a written declaration from the candidate confirming his/her consent
  • to a comparison of the dissertation with other texts in order to find matches and
  • to the storage of the dissertation in a database for this purpose

Please note: The doctoral candidate must be enrolled at Münster University at the time of registering for and taking the examination.

Review of the dissertation

Reviewers

The Chair of the Doctoral Committee appoints two reviewers for the submitted dissertation. At least one of them must be a full-time representative of the doctoral subject at the University of Münster.

The first review is usually prepared by the first supervisor. The second opinion is usually prepared by the second supervisor or by a representative of one the doctoral subjects specified in the doctorate regulations. One of the reviewers may be a professor from another university.

In the case of interdisciplinary theses, the second opinion may also be prepared by a representative of a subject not listed in the doctoral degree regulations (subject to separate justification).

In special cases, a third reviewer may be consulted, who usually represents the doctoral subject and may also be a member of another university.

Grading

The reviewers report to the doctoral committee on the dissertation in written reviews within three months. They apply for acceptance or rejection, stating their reasons. At the same time, they propose a grade. The following rating applies:

• summa cum laude (1 = with distinction)
• magna cum laude (2 = very good)
• cum laude (3 = good)
• rite (4 = passed)
• insufficient (5 = unsatisfactory)

The chairperson of the doctoral committee determines the assessment of the dissertation on the basis of the reviews. The arithmetic mean of the reviewers' predicates is calculated. Decimal places other than the first are cancelled without rounding. The overall grade is rounded down for decimal values up to ‘5’ and rounded up for decimal values from ‘6’.

The predicate ‘summa cum laude’ can only be awarded if all of the reviewers' predicates are “summa cum laude”. If one of the assessments is not ‘summa cum laude’, the overall grade cannot be better than ‘magna cum laude’.

If the predicates differ by more than one grade, the doctoral committee may consult a third reviewer (see above). The third expert opinion is included in the assessment according to the arithmetic mean.

Display

The dissertation and the reviews will be made available for inspection for a period of four weeks by all members of the faculty and any co-opted subjects who are authorised to examine according to the doctorate regulations. All authorised examiners will be notified by an announcement on the homepage of the Doctoral Examination Office and are entitled to submit a statement within the display period. Comments must be submitted within the display period. They must be submitted no later than two weeks after the end of the display period.

Acceptance / Rejection

The dissertation is rejected if both reviewers recommend rejection. It is accepted if both reviewers propose its acceptance and no other authorised examiner has recommended its rejection.

If the rejection of the dissertation is proposed in one of the reviews or in the reasoned opinion of another authorised examiner, the Chair of the Doctoral Committee may obtain a third review (see above). If the majority of the reviews obtained recommend rejection, the dissertation is rejected. In cases of doubt, the doctoral committee decides in consultation with the group of supervisors or the board of the training institution (Graduate School, Research Training Group).

If the dissertation is rejected, the doctoral candidate must be informed of this, stating the reasons. The doctoral examination is terminated with the rejection of the dissertation.

The doctoral candidate has one opportunity to resubmit the revised dissertation within two years of receiving notification that the dissertation has been rejected. If the doctoral candidate misses the deadline or if the dissertation is rejected again during the repeat attempt, the doctoral examination is definitively failed. A further resit, even with a dissertation on a different topic, is not possible. The doctoral committee of the faculty shall decide on hardship cases.

The original copies of the dissertation are handed over to the graduates after completion of the doctorate.

Oral examination / Disputatio

Form of the examination

The oral examination takes place in the subject of the doctorate in the form of an academic discussion (disputatio) lasting 90 minutes. As a rule, it takes place no later than six months after the end of the display period. It is open to the university public. In the case of justified applications, the Chair of the Doctoral Committee may also admit non-university participants. Doctoral candidates and examiners must be notified separately.

In justified cases, the disputation may be conducted as a video conference, provided that all requirements specified by the doctoral regulations for proper conduct are met and the doctoral candidate and the examiners involved give their written consent. The conduct of the disputatio as a video conference must be announced when the date for the disputatio is set and must be specifically noted in the minutes.

Examiners

The members of the group of supervisors and all reviewers act as examiners or examination board. The first supervisor is usually the chairperson of the committee. A protocol is compiled. At least two examiners must participate. At the request of the supervisors and with the consent of the candidate, the Doctoral Committee may appoint additional examiners.

Procedure

In the disputatio, the doctoral candidate first presents the theses of his/her dissertation in a lecture. In the subsequent discussion, he/she should demonstrate the ability to discuss the issue dealt with in the dissertation within the framework of comprehensive perspectives of the relevant subject and to reflect on his/her own research contexts, also in an overarching interdisciplinary context. Academic follow-up projects and career prospects can also be the subject of the disputation. The doctoral candidate does not have the right to see the reviews of his/her dissertation before the disputatio.

The examiners' questions are to be given preferential consideration. In principle, however, all members of the faculty holding a doctorate have the right to ask questions.

Grading

After the examination, the committee determines the grade according to the arithmetic mean. The grading scale listed in the doctorate regulations applies. Decimal places other than the first are cancelled without rounding. The overall grade is rounded down for decimal values up to ‘5’ and rounded up for decimal values from ‘6’.

The grade ‘summa cum laude’ may only be awarded by two examiners in the case of concurring votes, and by three or more examiners only if there is no more than one dissenting vote, which may not be lower than ‘magna cum laude’. 

Passing the examination

If the doctoral candidate has passed the oral examination, the responsible doctoral examination office will issue a certificate stating that the dissertation has been accepted and the oral examination has been successfully completed.

The examination is failed if the overall grade is worse than rite (4.0). A failed oral examination can only be repeated once within eighteen months, at the earliest fourteen days after the first failed attempt.

Determination of the overall grade

The doctoral committee calculates the overall grade from the non-rounded average of the dissertation grade and the oral examination grade in accordance with the grading scale set out in the doctoral regulations.

The non-rounded average of the dissertation grades is weighted twice, the oral examination grade is weighted once. The overall grade is rounded down for decimal values up to ‘5’ and rounded up for decimal values from ‘6’.

The overall grade ‘summa cum laude’ can only be awarded if both the dissertation has been graded ‘summa cum laude’ in all assessments as well as the oral examination.

Publication of the dissertation

Time frame

The publication of the dissertation should be completed in printed, duplicated or electronic form within two years of passing the examination. In exceptional cases, the deadline may be extended.

The examiners may require the doctoral candidate to revise the dissertation in a certain way before publication. A monographic dissertation may only be published once any conditions have been fulfilled and the first supervisor has declared it ready for printing.

Preliminary publications of partial results of a dissertation project are possible with the written consent of the first supervisor, to be submitted by the doctoral candidate to the Doctoral Examination Office, if they contain a reference to the fact that they are part of a dissertation in progress in the Faculty of History & Philosophy at the University of Münster.

In the case of a cumulative dissertation, publication may take place in parts and already during the doctoral phase. The publication is considered complete when the group of supervisors confirms that all parts have been published with the prior consent of the supervisors.

Medium

If a monographic dissertation is printed, it must have a minimum print run of 50 copies and be available in bookshops. It must be labelled as a dissertation on the back of the title page, stating the location of the dissertation. Alternatively, the dissertation can also be published by a ‘Book on Demand’ (BOD) publisher via the book trade on request. Six deposit copies of printed or BOD-published dissertations must be submitted.

If the publication is in electronic form, it must be accessible online at a university library or a scientific publisher in a standard data format within two years of completion of the examination. It must be labelled as a dissertation and state the location of the dissertation. Written confirmation from the university library or academic publisher of the date of electronic publication must be enclosed. In addition to the electronic version, four print copies must be submitted.

All forms of publication mentioned must correspond to the version approved for publication by the first supervisor.

In the case of a cumulative dissertation, all partial publications must be submitted in bound form and labelled with the usual title pages in six mandatory copies.